VIDEO: Who is The League of Gentlemen's Papa Lazarou based on?

See Reece Shearsmith, Steve Pemberton, Mark Gatiss and Jeremy Dyson talk to Radio X's Gordon Smart about the character.

The League of Gentlemen stars and creators have discussed their Papa Lazarou character, whose popularity took them by surprise.

The British comedy television series, which first aired in 1999, is set in the fictional northern town of Royston Vasey and follows the lives of strange characters played by Mark Gatiss, Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith, who along with Jeremy Dyson conceived The League of Gentlemen and wrote for the show.

But what was one of their most famous characters of Papa Lazarou based on? Watch our video above to find out.

Asked by Radio X's Gordon Smart about the one thing in their comedy TV series that has become incredibly popular, Steve Pemberton said: "I think going back to the second series, we introduced this character of Papa Lazarou and he was only in one episode and he came and went really.

"We were really surprised about how he took off and how his catchphrase 'Hello Dave' was being echoed around the country."

Reece Shearsmith as Papa Lazarou on stage.
Picture:
BBC

"That's that lovely thing," mused Mark Gatiss. "It's was just a ridiculously private joke, and the idea of everyone getting that..."

Reece Shearsmith, who plays the famous character, revealed: "It was an amalgam of lots of real incidents that had sort of snapped together to make this creature".

Asked about the most unusual place someone has recited the characters lines to him, Shearsmith replied: "I've had it in urinals. That's the worst..."

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